Regulators may be getting ready to order JPMorgan Chase (JPM) to bolster its safeguards against money laundering.
The nation's biggest bank by assets could receive the order from the Federal Reserve and the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency as early as Friday, Reuters reported, citing unnamed sources.
Though JPMorgan Chase would be directed to shore up alleged weaknesses in its compliance with laws and regulations that aim to prevent banks from becoming conduits for funds tied to illicit activities, the bank reportedly is unlikely to pay a monetary penalty.
A JPMorgan Chase spokesman declined to comment on the report, which follows reports in recent months by varied publications that regulators may be getting ready to tell the bank to reinforce its anti-money-laundering systems.
The company said in its latest quarterly filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission that it expected heightened scrutiny by regulators of its compliance with the Bank Secrecy Act, which is the nation's chief anti-money-laundering law.
The possible order comes as regulators step up their reviews of activity by banks to prevent money laundering lapses. In December, HSBC (HBC) agreed to pay $1.9 billion to settle charges it served as a gateway for funds tied to narcotics trafficking and other illegal activities. In August, Standard Chartered Bank agreed to pay $340 million to New York's top banking regulator to settle charges the bank laundered hundreds of billions of dollars for banks and others in Iran.
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